If you’ve been waiting for new iPads, Apple’s new iPad Pro, iPad Air, Magic Keyboard, and an Apple Pencil are on schedule for early May, according to Bloomberg News.
Mark Gurman for Bloomberg News:
Altogether, this launch is shaping up to be one of the biggest updates to the Apple tablet in a single day. And it’s a long time coming, especially for the iPad Pro. That model hasn’t had a meaningful refresh since 2018.
For those looking for more specific timing, I’m told the launch will probably happen the week of May 6…
the new lineup should bring a sales boost, but I’m not sure it will solve the iPad’s broader challenges. As someone who often uses a Mac and iPhone — and now a Vision Pro for watching videos — I find the iPad increasingly pointless. The device isn’t good enough to entirely replace a Mac for day-to-day work, and its software still leaves a lot to be desired. Here’s hoping that iPadOS 18 is a big improvement and the device can become a true Mac alternative.
MacDailyNews Take: It’s good to have hopes and dreams, but those who value life shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for Tim Cook’s Apple to magically fix what ails iPad in its 18th OS version.
Software aside, the hardware upgrades to the new iPads represent some of the biggest changes in the product’s history. For the first time, Apple will be moving its tablet screens over to OLED, or organic light-emitting diode, a standard that the iPhone already uses. The technology apparently looks amazing on such large displays — taking what iPhone users have experienced since 2017 to a whole new level. One drawback to the shift: The new models will likely come at higher price points, I’m told. Today’s iPad Pro starts at $799.
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MacDailyNews Take: Are you waiting for new iPads?
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My 2020 11″ iPad Pro is more than enough for me. Just sold my 12.9″ M1 Pro as it was not a suitable MacBook supplement (let alone replacement). There’s always hope that iPad OS will open up, but it’s pretty clear at this point that Apple never wants it to be as useful as Mac OS. It’s supposed to be Apple’s netbook/entertainment portal. Some people swear by them, but many more are perpetually aggravated by its limitations and at best it holds the #3 spot in their computing life behind a Mac and iPhone.
My current iPad Pro is good enough for me…but for the complete opposite reason you stated Nick. While you want the iPad to basically be a MacBook, I relish the days when the iPad was just an iPad, doing its thing that made it so popular in the first place – simplicity. No file system to worry around, no overly granular menus to contend with, you could just get in and do what you wanted and be done. Now it’s a Frankenstein and neither camp is happy.
Gotta be honest: I wish with all of my heart that someone would make a viable Apple/Microsoft alternative, and sorry folks, Linux still isn’t it, keep dreaming. I don’t have the words for what has happened to this company that I used to arduously support, to what I feel now in begrudgingly supporting them in what they have become. I honestly don’t care about the new iPads; if the culture of the company is wrecked and mediocre, it doesn’t really matter, and it is. Were it not for M chips and the best, though far and away less than desirable, privacy protections Apple still has – I honestly think i might just build a PC from scratch and roll with it. Vision Pro has absolutely turned out to be Google Glass 2.0 with no discernible practical application, even going forward with improvements. This company died with Steve Jobs, and yeah, that’s not fair, but it’s true.
Give us something better, someone. Anyone.
*died with Steve Jobs. I think an era did. And by all appearances, it ain’t coming back anytime soon. Modern Apple may make a lot of money, but they are a joke.